Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is ...
The Keywords in this verse are:
· forsaking
· assembling of ourselves together
Look first of all at the phrase "assembling of ourselves". When reading this verse, the first thing that would naturally come to mind is that we, as Christians, need to make sure that we literally "assemble ourselves together". Therefore, one might naturally assume that this means that we must assemble together with other Christians, to worship God, read His Word, and fellowship with other like-minded Christians, whether it be at home, or at a "church-building". This verse is widely misunderstood, and used my many preachers, pastors, and church-going people to tell other Christians “they should be going to church”.
Does this verse actually mean that? Well, the answer that follows is not my opinion, nor my view. It is THE WORD OF GOD as it is written, comparing Scripture with Scripture (Acts 17:11), and looking into the root origins and meanings behind the Greek words used to represent “assembling of ourselves together”.
So, in a very simple answer, the truth and meaning of this verse is not referring to going to a physical church to fellowship. It is not referring to a command to go to church. In fact, it is not even referring to Christians assembling together to worship God, read His Word, fellowship with other believers, etc...
In order to understand this phrase "assembling of ourselves together", we have to go back to the Koine Greek. (Also known as ‘Biblical Greek’ or ‘New Testament Greek’.)
[Note inserted: you need to know that Hebrew and Greek (Old Testament was scribed in Hebrew and New Testament in Greek) are very complex ancient languages, Hebrew especially, also known as Jewish Script – the language of God’s chosen). Unfortunately most of us don’t know the Hebrew and Greek language. In a very brief easy-to-understand way of explaining: unlike in the English language where each letter of the 26-letter alphabet from A to Z only represents a sound, every Hebrew ‘letter’ (22 ‘letters’ appearing as symbols from ‘alef’ to ‘taw’) has meaning, so these ‘letters with meaning’ combined together form and represent precise meaning as a word. It is very complex but very precise to give perfect meaning to something. Similarly, with the Greek language (consisting of 24 ‘letters’ and symbols from ‘alpha’ to ‘omega’), the elements of a word have meanings. Hebrew and Greek accurately ‘convey speech with meaning’.]
According to the Greek, this whole phrase "assembling of ourselves together" is actually only one main word in Greek, and one "secondary word". The "secondary word" is G1438 "heautou" (ἑαυτοῦ), which means "him, her, it, them my, thy, our, your (-self or -selves)". In the context of this verse, it is quite simply the Greek word for "ourselves". So that then leaves us with "assembling of together".
The Greek word for "assembling of together" is G1997 "episunagoge" (ἐπισυναγωγή). Again at first glance, it is easy to identify the "-sunagoge" part of the word, and say, 'See, that's the Greek word for "synagogue" where Jews worshipped". The resulting assumption would then be that this is the equivalent of "church" to us.
Yes, "sunagoge" IS IN FACT the Greek word for "synagogue" as used throughout the New Testament – see G4864. However, the key lies in the prefix "-epi-" or ἐπι. If it were the case that God was referring to gathering together in a “church building”, why didn’t He use just “sunagogue”? – as in “not forsaking the assembly of the church [sunagogue]”? God uses the word “sunagogue” regularly throughout the New Testament to refer to a “synagogue” as a building (see Greek word G 4864), so if God was referring to the “building” in Hebrews 10:25, then He would have used the same word here as well. There is a clue however, and it lies in the prefix “epi”. This three-letter prefix not only changes the whole word, but also changes the whole meaning and context of the word. An analogy would be the root word "holy". We can have "holy", "holier", and "holiest". They all refer to that which is dedicated or consecrated to God. Now add "un-" to "holy", and we have "unholy". This word suddenly has a completely different meaning. In the same way, "sunagoge" and "episunagoge" have two VERY DIFFERENT meanings!
If we take this word back to its very bare Greek elements, we have the following:
ἐπι συν αγω γή
epi - sun - ago - ge
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ἐπι "epi-"
Let's look at the first element "epi-" (ἐπι) G1909
The Greek meaning of epi- is found in G1909, which means "over, upon, above". Even our English grammar teaches the same meaning. For example, consider the following picture:
These three layers make up what we call "skin". In the centre we have the thickest part, the "dermis". But what is "over / upon / above" the dermis? The EPIdermis. It is the layer that is ABOVE the dermis!
Another example is your kidneys and adrenaline glands.
Kidneys come from the word nephron or nephrine (from Greek νεφρός - nephros, meaning "kidney"). Above your kidneys are your adrenaline glands which produce adrenalin, or correctly known as "epinephrine". Again EPInephrine. It is because the adrenalin glands are OVER or ABOVE the kidneys (nephrine), resulting in the word "epinethrine".
A further example is the word epicentre.
In an earthquake, we sometimes hear the term "epicentre" being used to describe the town or city which was directly ABOVE the point at which the earthquake actually originated. Hence we have the "centre" or "focus" of the earthquake (the actual point at which the earthquake happened), and then we have the "epicentre" the point DIRECTLY ABOVE the focus of the earthquake.
Examples of the use of "epi" G1996 in the New Testament which also mean "over or above" include:
Jas 5:14 Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:
Col 3:14 And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness.
Eph 4:6 One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.
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συν "sun"
Now let's look at the next Greek element "sun" (συν) G4862
The Greek meaning of this element συν means "a union, fusion". Strongs meaning is "union; with or together". From this we can determine that this element συν is referring to "ASSEMBLING TOGETHER in unity."
Here is where a whole new meaning will be gained, when we combine "epi-" and ""sun" together. As we know from before, EPI means above or over, and SUN refers to the gathering together in unity / fusion. If we combine the two meanings together, we suddenly have "the gathering together above / over in unity / fusion". The word "fusion" adds a valuable insight into what happens to us believers on that day when we meet Christ in the air (which some people refer to as the Rapture, but as it is not a Scriptural word, I will not call it so). The definition of fusion is "the combining of two or more entities to create a NEW ONE. In context of that day when we meet Christ in the air, we believers will be "gathered together in the air (above)" and "we shall all be CHANGED, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump....the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and WE SHALL BE CHANGED." 1Cor 15:51-52. The "change" will be that every believer throughout the age of grace will be gathered together, and we will all be unified or fused together - union or fusion, the end result being the perfection of the Bride of Christ. Take this another step further. Think of marriage, which is also a union. When a man and a woman unite in marriage, they become "one" spiritually and physically. When we, the Bride, meet our Saviour, our marriage to Him is one of fusion, or unity.
If we look at the Greek word "episunagogue" which is used in Heb 10:25, we find a fascinating fact. This word is used only one other time in the whole New Testament. This passage is in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-2:
2Th 2:1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
2Th 2:2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
Is it coincidence that it is used only these two times? Not at all, because both of these verses are related to each other in terms of the topic being addressed. Now take both 2Th 2:1-2 and Heb 10:23-25, put them side by side (without verse numbers):
Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) and let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.
There are a number of common elements here. First of all, both Thessalonians and Hebrews are DIRECTLY talking about that day when we shall meet our Saviour Jesus Christ in the air 1Th 4:17.
1Th 4:17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
I have highlighted key words here, which clearly teach us that these verses are specifically speaking about being "assembled together in unity above" (in the air) on that marvelous day!
Going back to both passages in 2 Thessalonians and Hebrews, we now clearly see references to "the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ", "the day of Christ", "the day approaching". Again, a reference to that day when we meet Christ in the air (2 Th 2:1). From this unique use of the word "episunagogue", we can understand that BOTH passages are in fact talking about that day when we meet Christ in the air - both 2Th 2:1-2 and Heb 10:25.
Another parallel between both passages in 2 Thessalonians and Hebrews is the exhortation and beseeching to remain strong in our faith. "not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter" and "hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering", "provoke unto love and to good works", and "NOT FORSAKING.....as the manner of some is". The writer of Hebrews then goes on to say in Heb 10:26-27and 29:
Heb 10:26 For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
Heb 10:27 But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.
Heb 10:29 Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?
Keeping in mind that Hebrews is written to the Jews, the Jews struggled with salvation in Jesus Christ through faith vs. living under the law, which included sacrificing for sins. This is why we see in the verses of Heb 10:1-17 explains again to the Jews that the requirement for continual sacrifices for sins by the priests was done away with when Jesus Christ was offered once as the perfect offering.
The warning given to the Jews, however, is if they have gained knowledge of the one perfect offering ordained by God, being Jesus Christ, but then choose to reject it, then there remains no more sacrifice for their sins. If God accepts Jesus Christ as the perfect offering which replaces the sacrifice of animals, but the Jews reject Him even when they “have received the knowledge of the truth” (Heb 10:26), what a terrible eternal judgement they suffer for forsaking and rejecting the truth. As states, “Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?” (Heb 10:29)
We see there were Jews who had were enlightened of the way of salvation (Jn 14:6), tasted of the heavenly gift (Rom 6:23), were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, had tasted of the word of God (Luk 8:11, Heb 4:12), and yet despite all this, they were not grasping the very basic principles of salvation through Jesus Christ. As a result, there were those who had left their faith and forsaken the Truth. We see throughout various passages in Hebrews that the Jews were constantly struggling spiritually, wrestling with the law vs. Jesus Christ as the perfect offering for sins. (Heb 6:1-2) “Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.” That is why in the verses immediately prior to chapter 6, that they should have been teachers by now, but because they were struggling with the law vs Jesus Christ, they were still babes needing milk, requiring teaching "AGAIN which be the first principles of the oracles of God." Heb 5:12-14.
In summary of the parallels of 2Th 2:1-2 and Heb 10:23-25, we see that the writer was exhorting the Christians to remain stedfast in their faith in Jesus Christ as their Saviour and to look forward to the "gathering of all believers" on that day when we meet Christ in the air, rather than being numbered with those who had “for a while believed”, or “departed from the faith” that they had received, which was preached to them by the apostles and through the epistles delivered to the various churches.
In light of the Greek element “sun”, we as believers are many members, but are united as one in the body of Christ. However, if we turn away from accepting Jesus Christ as the offering and sacrifice for our sins, then it means we have rejected Him as our Saviour. If we reject Him and choose not to accept Him as our Saviour, then we also walk away from being part of that unity or “oneness” in the body of Christ. If we reject or walk away from Him, then we have FORSAKEN Him – the opposite of “sun”.
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ἄγω "ago"
Now let's look at the next Greek element "ago" (ἄγω) G71.
This is actually a verb, and according to Strongs, has the meaning of "to lead, to bring, to drive, to lead away". The actual Greek word "agos" is directly related to "ago" and means "leader, chief"
From this, we can understand that "ago" here is referring to the act of being lead away by a leader. As believers, we have one who is our leader or head, which is Christ 1Co 11:3, Eph 5:23. In that glorious day when we shall be caught up together with Him, He Who is our leader(Greek "agos") will lead us away (Greek "ago") from this earth, and bring us (Greek "ago") to glory Heb 2:10. "For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory."
Now to put the three Greek elements together. As we understood from earlier, we have "epi" and "sun", which when the meanings of both elements are combined together, we have "the gathering together of all believers throughout the world in the air abovethis earth, in unity, to be changed into the perfect Bride of Christ."
Now add the meaning of "ago", and suddenly our definition of "epi-sun" includes the fact that our leader, our chief head, which is our Lord Jesus Christ takes us fromthat meeting point in the air, and leads us, or carriesus away as His Bride. It is the same principle as a Bridegroom taking or carrying his Bride home!
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γή "ge"
The final Greek element is "ge" (γή). Interestingly, "ge" does not have a direct meaning on its own. It is added to a Greek word in what is called a "duplication". In effect, it is used to emphasize a part of a word, or the whole word, that it is added to. Another way to explain it, is that it gives the word it is added to, a sense of being ultimate by adding a sense of intensity or extremity. In simple terms, take the word "holy". If we add "-est" to the end, we have a new word "holiest" which expresses the most intense (or extreme) sense of the word "holy". Another example is the word "further" (as in, "I travelled futher than you"). Now add "-est" to the end to emphasize the meaning of the word, and we have "furtherest". The result is that we are expressing the word "further" in its most extreme, or most intense form, which is "FURTHEREST". Example, "I travelled the FURTHEREST out of EVERYONE!"
In this context, if we combine "episunago" and "ge" to form the FULL word "episunagoge" which is the Greek word describing "the assembling of ourselves together" in Heb 10:25, we now have a COMPLETE picture of what the day of the coming of our Lord is!
In the most basic form, the definition of the FULL Greek word "episunagoge" is:
"All the believers throughout the world will, in the air above (Greek "epi") this earth, meet in unity or a fusion (Greek "sun"), to be will be led away and carried home (Greek "ago") to complete the ultimate (Greek "ge") goal of marriage - UNITY, ONENESS, the CONSUMMATION.
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Now, we will finally look at the word "Not forsaking" in Heb 10:25, which comes from the Greek word enkataleipo G1459 (ἐγκαταλείπω). The Greek definition is as we understand it in English. It denotes the act of "totally abandoning, utterly forsaking, to leave behind, desert".
The interesting thing is, that in order to forsake someone or something, you have to have first been there with that "someone", or have first been a part of that "something". In light of this, the writer in Hebrews was stating that there were Jews who had made a profession of faith in Jesus Christ (Heb 10:23 Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering;), were learned in the doctrines of Christ as taught by the apostles, and were learned in the teachings regarding the day of our Lord Jesus Christ, but had chosen to turn their backs on the truth, or forsake it, "as the manner of some is" (Heb 10:25), either to return to the law, or because of unbelief Heb 10:23 "Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering".
Another valuable way to look at the context and meaning of “not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together”, is to consider other Scriptures which talk about gathering together or assembling together of Christians. Take for example Mat 26:3, which says, “Then assembled together the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders of the people, unto the palace of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas…” The phrase “assembled together” here is from the Greek word (G4863), and guess what the Greek word is? – “sunago” This makes perfect sense too! “sun” = unity or together, and “ago” = chief leader. So we have the gathering together of the chief leaders in unity. Was it in a synagogue? No, it was “unto the palace of the high priest”.
Now take Acts 11:26b, “…and it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch.” Here we clearly see that it is referring to Barnabas and Saul (Paul) gathering together with other believers. The problem is, the Greek words used in Acts and Hebrews are NOT the same. Here in Acts, the Greek word “sunago” (G4863) is used (and yes, it is the single Greek word for the phrase “assembled themselves”, not just “assembled”). Did God make a mistake by not using “episunagoge” here in Acts, because He is clearly referring to believers gathering or assembling together? Of course not. As God’s Word states, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God” (2 Tim 3:16), “The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.” (Psa 12:6), and “Every word of God is pure” (Prov 30:5). God has deliberately chosen a special word for both 2Th 2:1-2 and Heb 10:23-25, because He is NOT referring to a gathering or assembling together of believers in a church.
Don’t mistake that G4863 is only used to refer to phrases in the Bible that use the word “assemble”, “assembly”, or “assembling”. It is also used for phrases using “gathering” or “gathered” together. An example of this is Mat 13:2, “And great multitudes were gathered together unto him, so that he went into a ship, and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore”. This Greek word G4863 is used to describe the “gathering together” of the multitudes.
Now to give food for thought, look at Jas 2:2, which says, “For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment…” Here we have a slightly different Greek Word used. We have the Greek word “sunagoge” (G4864) to represent “assembly in a building”. So no longer just “an assembly or gathering together” but we have the added dimension of being at a physical location. If Hebrews 10:25 was referring to a gathering together in a physical church building, then this verse would be a PERFECT verse to back this up. If “episunagoge” referred to an assembling together of believers in a church, then God could have used it in this verse in James. But, again, He didn’t. God has deliberately not used the same Greek words in both passages, because He wants to clearly distinguish the real meaning of Heb 10:25 and 2 Th 2:1-2.
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In final summary of these two powerful passages in 2 Th 2:1-2 and Heb 10:25, we have an amazing revelation about the hidden meanings behind these two passages. One thing becomes clear, and that is the fact that these verses are not talking about gathering together in a church building. We ARE the church. Jesus Christ tells us,
(Mat 18:20) “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” **
Yes, it is the Greek word “sunago” (G4863) used here too!
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